Encyclopedia of Espionage, Intelligence, and Security

SENTRI (Secure Electronic Network for Travelers' Rapid Inspection)

The SENTRI (Secure Electronic Network for Travelers' Rapid
Inspection) is a component of the Port Passenger Accelerated Service
System (PORTPASS) in use at selected border crossings (e.g., crossings at
the U.S. and Mexico border in California and Texas) to facilitate quick
passage through entry inspection checkpoints. SENTRI and other expedited
U.S. national entry systems are designed to identify pre-approved low-risk
international travelers using a combination of biometric measurements and
encodable data. Automated entry systems are designed to allow inspectors
additional time to focus on high-risk entrants.

SENTRI screens program participants and their vehicles against information
formerly maintained in former INS and U.S. Customs Service databases. On
March 1, 2003, custody of the database was assumed by the Department of
Homeland Security (DHS).

SENTRI applicants are fingerprinted, and agents conduct background
investigations to verify immigration status and assure the applicant has
no prior criminal record. Prior to DHS reorganization, U.S. custom agents
were responsible for conducting screening interviews and for conducting
preliminary vehicle inspections.

SENTRI features dedicated commuter lanes at entry points . SENTRI systems
utilize a combination of technologies to verify the identity of
individuals in vehicles. SENTRI's dedicated commuter lanes also use
a radio frequency tags affixed to the vehicle to allow moving
identification of the vehicle.

When an approved SENTRI participant passes through the SENTRI system,
digital license plate readers and camera scans allow inspectors to
validate both the identity of the vehicle and the identity of the
occupants of the vehicle against digitized photographs of approved
participants in the SENTRI database and other law enforcement databases.

Initially, a system of barricades funnels traffic to an automated
inspection zone where the SENTRI Automatic Vehicle (AVI) system,
consisting of an in-ground inductive loop and a free-standing light
curtain, scans the vehicle. The system then interrogates an RF transmitter
located on the vehicle. The ensuing transmission of data primes subsequent
systems for analysis and comparison of physical data and data stored in
the SENTRI database. Data comparisons are also made between data encoded
on a magnetic stripe on the program participant's PORTPASS
identification card. Either in person or via camera, inspectors also
visually compare prospective entrants against the data maintained in the
SENTRI database. Lacking a positive identification, some combination of
electric gates,
tire shredders, and traffic restriction barriers prevent physical passage
through the entry checkpoint.

As with other automated entry systems, SENTRI utilizes a
"one-to-one" search protocol to verify identity. Instead of
comparing input data across a broad database, an identification number
allows direct comparison with the data on file for a particular PORTPASS
identification number. Biometric measurements, including fingerprints are
also associated with the PORTPASS SENTRI identification number should
further identity interrogation be required. Unlike fingerprint search
protocols used by the FBI, the entry search protocols are, as of March
2003, unable to take biometrics and conduct a broad search to identify a
subject's identity.

As of March 1, 2003, the newly created DHS absorbed the former Immigration
and Naturalization Service (INS). All INS border patrol agents and
investigators—along with agents from the U.S. Customs Service and
Transportation Security Administration—were placed under the
direction of the DHS Directorate of Border and Transportation Security
(BTS). Responsibility for U.S. border security and the enforcement of
immigration laws was transferred to BTS.

BTS is also scheduled to incorporate the United States Customs Service
(previously part of the Department of Treasury).

Former INS immigration service functions are scheduled to be placed under
the direction of the DHS Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services.
Under the reorganization the INS formally ceases to exist on the date the
last of its functions are transferred.

Although the description of the technologies involved in the SENTRI entry
security program remained stable, in an effort to facilitate border
security BTS plans envision higher levels of coordination between formerly
separate agencies and databases. As of April 2003, the specific
coordination and future of the SENTRI program was uncertain with regard to
name changes, program administration, and policy changes.